MUMBAI, Oct. 19 -- The state has ordered an FIR to be registered against the education department officers and 12 school managements for forging documents in order to pass off as aided schools. Once this status is obtained, the state pays the salaries of the school's teachers and non-teaching staff beginning with a payment of 20% with a yearly rise of 20%. The scam took place 13 years ago, and led to a loss of Rs.2.5 crore to the state exchequer. A criminal case was registered this week after the Nagpur bench of the Bombay high court asked the principal secretary of the school education department to appear before it last week. The grant, which started at 20% in 2012, went up to 100% by 2017. In this year, the education department learnt that the grant had been sanctioned based on forged documents, and it was stopped. A departmental inquiry was initiated of the officials involved, in which three to four officers were held guilty of forgery. However, no criminal case was registered against them. Next, the schools moved the Nagpur bench for restoration of the grant and claimed that they had played no part in forging documents. The court, however, held them equally guilty and also questioned why the government was going soft on the officers. Last week, it also sought a report on the action taken against the officials. Taking quick cognisance, the department directed the divisional deputy director to file an FIR in the case. "Based on the report of the departmental inquiry, a further inquiry should be conducted," the department's order states. "The grant of Rs.2.5 crore given to these schools was subsequently recovered from them but the court was insistent on a criminal case being filed against the officials, as they were held guilty in the departmental inquiry," said an official from the school education department. The officials and office-bearers from the schools are expected to be arrested."...